Study: Median Wealth for Single Black Women at $5 in USA

In a groundbreaking report released Monday by a leading economic research group, social scientists turned a spotlight on the grave financial challenges facing an often overlooked group of women, many of whom could not take an unpaid sick day or repair a major appliance without going into debt.

…Among the most startling revelations in the wealth data is that while single white women in the prime of their working years (ages 36 to 49) have a median wealth of $42,600 (still only 61 percent of their single white male counterparts), the median wealth for single black women is only $5.

…Married or cohabitating white women have a median wealth of $167,500. Married or cohabitating black women have a median net worth of $31,500.

…”If wealth was based on hard work, African-Americans would be the wealthiest people in our nation,” [Meizhu Lui, director of the Closing the Gap Initiative] said. “It’s not about behavior. It’s about government policies. Who does the government help and who is it not helping?”